Contents
Christmas will most likely be the busiest time of the year for hospitality. Businesses are looking to finally enjoy Christmas parties and consumers are generally in the mood to spend more than last year. But how can you prepare your hospitality business for the rush? Below we explore the options.
Get your Christmas food menu sorted quickly. This should give you enough time to plan ahead, get the right ingredients in and have your chefs familiarise themselves with the recipes. Make sure you cater to a wide range of diets and find a place for vegetarian and vegan options on the menu. You can also get into the festive spirit by putting a range of Christmas drinks on the menu.
Get bookings sorted
Ideally, you’ll be booking in Christmas parties early. This way you’ll be able to plan around numbers in advance and ensure that the events run as smoothly as possible. This can work in conjunction with your menu: the earlier you get the menu out, the sooner you’ll be able to attract businesses.
Promote your business
You’ll also need to put your business in the best possible position to succeed. Part of this involves promoting your business. For a start, you’ll want a large presence on social media: ensure that you have someone running a campaign that includes regular content posting. If you’re feeling particularly interested in social media, you can even run competitions on platforms such as Twitter and Instagram. You can also advertise the business locally with flyers and business cards.
Get the right equipment in
The last thing you need is for your equipment to malfunction during the Christmas rush. Go through your inventory in advance and ensure that you have the appropriate equipment in place.
Hire extra staff
You don’t want to be caught out and find yourself understaffed on a busy day. Avoid this by hiring extra seasonal staff in advance. By offering fair wages and shifts, you should be able to attract plenty of applications.
Decorations
Christmas is a chance for you to decorate your restaurant and bar in a fresh, exciting style. You can set up a festive area on the way into your space and allow customers to take photos there. If it looks particularly vibrant, it can be a useful way to promote the business on social media.
Preparing for the Christmas season in hospitality can be both daunting and exciting. If you’re working to a tight budget, you could consider cash flow finance to help hire additional staff and fund equipment in the run up to Christmas. Ultimately, though, with careful planning, hospitality should be able to thrive this winter.
